Broadway in Norfolk has announced its 2019-20 season at Chrysler Hall, and it will be one of the best the region has seen — and it will include one of the most sought-after musicals in the world.

Seven shows, including "Hamilton," will give 80 performances in Norfolk during a full season of weeklong, or longer, runs; the kind that draw visitors from out of town and boost hotels and restaurants.

With the three-week booking of the phenomenon “Hamilton,” the season includes four other local premieres – the “The Band’s Visit,” “Waitress,” Roald Dahl’s "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “The Play That Goes Wrong.” The other two shows are revivals of “Wicked,” with a two-week run, and “Fiddler on the Roof.”

Historically, Norfolk was a secondary theater market that drew “bus and truck” tours – one-weekend, in-and-out bookings with a bus for the cast and a truck for the sets.

The opening of Chrysler Hall in 1972 promised a new age, and the impact on Broadway touring shows really took hold when “Phantom of the Opera” arrived for an unprecedented run. It proved Hampton Roads was a theater market with money for expensive shows. Bookers took note.

Big touring shows like “The Lion King,” “Les Misérables,” “Miss Saigon” and “Wicked” became a part of the local theater season.

That has waned in recent years, as more shows arrived for Friday-through-Sunday bookings, such as this weekend's "The Wizard of Oz" production. The 2019-20 season is a return to the glory days.

Steve Traxler, president of Jam Theatricals, said, “We are so excited to bring ‘Hamilton’ to Norfolk, along with what just may be our strongest lineup of classics and premieres.”

Jam Theatricals is a Chicago-based entertainment company that manages subscription seasons in 28 cities.

Norfolk Mayor Kenneth Alexander said: “We are thrilled to welcome such an exciting and exceptional season to our city, and look forward to the economic and cultural opportunities it will provide.”

The season:

“The Band's Visit”

Oct. 29-Nov. 3, eight performances

This musical is one of only four shows in Broadway history to win all top 10 Tony Awards, including best actor and actress. A group of Egyptian musicians gets lost in the desert in Israel and must stay overnight in a small town where they feel unwelcome. It is based on a 2007 foreign film that had a successful local run at Naro Expanded Cinema in Norfolk. The Broadway run of this comedic drama will close in April.

___

“Fiddler on the Roof”

Nov. 19-24, eight performances

Following a revival on Broadway, Tevye returns to ask why God has smitten him and wonder what it would be like to be a rich man. New choreography and staging is promised, and the timeless songs remain, like “Sunrise, Sunset,” “Tradition,” “Matchmaker, Matchmaker” and “Far From the Home I Love.”

___

“Hamilton”

Dec. 10-29, 24 performances

The story of America’s first secretary of the treasury is imagined with a variety of music styles, mostly rap. Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote the music. The show won 11 Tony Awards in 2016 and continues, every day, to set box-office records.

“Waitress”

Jan. 28-Feb. 2, 2020, eight performances

Pie will be served in Chrysler Hall which, actually, is a much bigger job than when this musical was in a smaller, Broadway theater. An unloved and unappreciated waitress learns, via baking a better pie (and realizing her self-worth) that she can find fulfillment – and even a good man to replace her abusive husband. Sara Bareilles composed the music.

___

“The Play That Goes Wrong”

March 3-8, 2020, eight performances

In the only nonmusical of the season, an amateur British theater company tries to stage a murder mystery, and everything goes wrong. It’s a knockabout farce.

___

Roald Dahl’s "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”

March 31-April 5, 2020, eight performances

Based on the 1964 children’s novel by Roald Dahl, this musical keeps some of the favorite songs from the 1971 movie version, “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.” Among the treats are "The Candy Man,” “Pure Imagination” and “I’ve Got a Golden Ticket.”

___

“Wicked”

May 20-31, 2020, 16 performances

This musical look at what happened before Dorothy got to Oz had a wildly successful run in Norfolk, and it's one of the biggest hits remaining on Broadway.

Season tickets are available – with a six-show package for as low as $330 and the option of adding “Wicked” – at 757-823-4299 and broadwaynorfolk.com.

No individual tickets are on sale for “Hamilton.” It is for sale only as a part of the subscription. Individual tickets for all shows will go on sale at a later date.